TOWNSPOTLIGHT
SPOTLIGHT ON
PULBOROUGH
SET ALONG THE GORGEOUS RIVER ARUN, Pulborough is a village brimming with character – beautiful Georgian buildings, a statuesque Grade I listed church, Roman streets and plenty of history. Pulborough has become a commuter town thanks to its great links to London and is a calm and community-spirited place to come home to.
HISTORY IN BRIEF
Pulborough started off as a crossing place over the River Arun. The Romans had built an impressive settlement at Hardham, just across the river, but chose to cross the Arun to Pulborough because it was a good stopping place en route to London. Its location at the convergence of two rivers – the River Arun and the River Rother – made it an excellent place for resting horses, cattle, and people too.
Pulborough stayed in this useful, yet limited state for centuries, but in the industrial age of the 19th century things started to change. The River Arun became used more frequently to transport goods, so shops, pubs and other businesses sprung up along its banks to help the weary travellers, or to make use of the river’ s transport system themselves. Trains came next, then the road networks, and soon Pulborough was a thriving village with a great deal of engineering and industry coming out of it.
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